Downtown Louisville will be taken over Saturday by the Taste of Louisville, Louispalooza and the Louisville Farmers Market, but the weekend doesn't truly get moving until Sunday.

The Sonic Boom criterium cycling races are set to speed through Louisville's historic streets all day Sunday for the fourth straight year. This is the first year, however, that the races are scheduled on the heels of the city's biggest annual event.

"We've never done that before, but I think it will be fun to have (the Taste of Louisville 12K and 5K running races and Sonic Boom) races back to back days on the same streets," Louisville Chamber of Commerce executive director Shelley Angell said. "It should be an exciting weekend."

Sonic Boom race organizers promise to clear the streets of spilled ice cream and beer, and any other remnants of Saturday's Taste of Louisville, before the skinny tires hit the pavement Sunday.

"Taste of Louisville always does a great job of cleanup afterward, but we've got a street sweeper set to clean the streets and we'll be out there at 5 a.m. on race day to clear and set up the course," said Andy Johnson, Sonic Boom race director. "It's going to be fun to follow the Taste of Louisville. It's a great way to kick off the summer."

A total of 14 criterium races — timed races on a 1K loop — will spin through downtown from 7:45 a.m. to 6:10 p.m., concluding with the Pro Men's race.

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With downtown Louisville's summer patios lining Main Street and hundreds of spectators perched on the curbs, the streets are narrow and the turns tighter than normal.

"The turns are half as open as they normally would be, and that scares away some racers," Johnson said. "It's very tight, very technical and it requires a great deal of skill from the racers."

Johnson said the event is reminiscent of the Palio di Siena horse race in Italy, where once a year the city of Siena opens its confined, historic streets to horses and jockeys.

"We don't get to do this in downtown settings very often," Johnson said. "Usually criterium races are pushed into business parks or other outlying areas. On the Colorado cycling calendar, I think this is the only one that uses a city's main streets. It makes for an incredible spectator experience."

The races start and finish on Main Street, in the heart of downtown Louisville.

"You can sit right there on the patios with a beer or glass of wine and watch the cyclists go by at speeds upwards of 30 miles per hour on the finish sprint," Johnson said. "That's unique."

Racers will have more on the line than just bragging rights Sunday. The race serves as the Colorado Master Criterium Championships.

But the event isn't solely focused on competition, either.

A beginning women's bike racing clinic will take place prior to one of the women's races. Elevation Cycles of Boulder will host bike clinics every hour on the hour, beginning at 10 a.m., covering everything from flat tire and chain fixes to necessary tools and ride preparedness.

An emerging highlight of the Sonic Boom race day has become the free kids race at 12:45 p.m. With a short course for riders 5 and younger, and a full race loop open to aspiring racers ages 6 to 9, Johnson said the kids race is designed to be a first step into bike racing.

"It's just to introduce them to the concept of bike racing," he said. "And at the end they all get ice cream and ribbons and a Lucky Pie musette bag."

This year's race also was chosen to be a People for Bikes event. The organization will be on hand to raise awareness about cycling as a way of life.

Fifty-five racers strong, Sonic Boom Racing is the only competitive cycling team based in Louisville.

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